Teen drumming sensation Nandi Bushell and Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello have joined forces once again, this time for a cover of the John Lennon classic “Power to the People” at the Download Festival in England this past weekend.
Nandi took the stage for the final song of Morello’s set on Saturday (June 15th) at Donington Park.
After being introduced, the 14-year-old prodigy counted the song in with her drum sticks before Morello and members of his solo band led the crowd in the titular chant: “Power to the people!” Morello asked for a bit more of Bushell’s kit in his stage monitors — the levels were still set for his regular drummer — and then tore into some guitar stabs as the crowd carried the repeating chorus.
The highlight was Nandi’s drum solo, as Morello stepped aside to give the crowd a good view of her skills. As we’ve come to expect, she held things down like a consummate pro, proving once again that she can hold her own with rock greats like Morello.
The onstage collab follows Bushell and Morello’s songwriting session with his son Roman a couple years ago. While Bushell (who is from the UK) was visiting the States back in 2021, she stopped by the Morello residence and ended up writing the climate-action anthem “The Children Will Rise Up” with the guitarist and his son.
In other news, Morello revealed that he had been working “behind the scenes” to help remove Barclays bank as a sponsor for the Download Festival. Many artists had been boycotting the fest until the sponsorship was dissolved, with controversy arising from the fact that the bank was financing and profiting from the production of weapons used in Israel’s war on Gaza.
After the announcement that Barclays would no longer be sponsoring the fest, Morello made the following post on X/Twitter, breaking his conspicuous silence on the matter:
“BREAKING: Barclays ends sponsorship of @DownloadFest @IsleOfWightFest & @LatitudeFest! A bank funding war crimes has no place at music festivals. The fact that Download has listened to its musicians and cut ties with Barclays Bank is a testament to the power of artists taking collective action for human rights. I’ve been pushing hard for this behind the scenes for some time and I salute all the artists who have taken a stand to help make this historic withdrawal happen.”
Below you can watch Morello and Bushell’s onstage collab at the Download Festival.
BREAKING: Barclays ends sponsorship of @DownloadFest @IsleOfWightFest & @LatitudeFest! A bank funding war crimes has no place at music festivals. The fact that Download has listened to its musicians and cut ties with Barclays Bank is a testament to the power of artists taking…
— Tom Morello (@tmorello) June 14, 2024